The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Dec. 08, 1998
Filed:
Jun. 07, 1995
Alvin Peterson, Jamul, CA (US);
Lee K Landeen, San Diego, CA (US);
John Bennett, San Diego, CA (US);
Jason Gee, San Diego, CA (US);
Scott Chesla, Atlanta, GA (US);
Joan Zeltinger, San Diego, CA (US);
Advanced Tissue Sciences, La Jolla, CA (US);
Abstract
An apparatus and method for sterilizing, seeding, culturing, storing, shipping, and testing heart valves is disclosed. Specifically, the present invention relates to an apparatus and method for dynamically seeding and culturing heart valves with human cells, resulting in a heart valve populated with viable human cells. In a preferred embodiment, the apparatus includes a fluid reservoir, a pneumatic pressure chamber, a pressure source for providing a varying pressure to the pressure chamber, and a heart valve holder. In an alternative exemplary embodiment, the apparatus includes a fluid reservoir, a pump, a venturi tube, a heart valve chamber, a heart valve holder, and a valve connected to a timer. In each embodiment, the components are combined in a fluid circuit to create a variable cycling and pulsatile fluid flow for seeding and culturing which can closely resemble the physiological conditions found in the human heart.